A Riverside woman was charged with making up a story about being raped near a west suburban Metra station, police said.
Mary Ann Malik, 47, is accused of filing a false police report, a felony. Malik originally told police someone grabbed her from behind last Tuesday when she got off the train at Longcommon crossing around 8 p.m. after work.
She said the attacker told her not to scream and then sexually assaulted her in the alley behind her apartment building, at 63 Forest Ave. But police said the story didn't add up.
Since the report was filed, officers couldn't get a hold of Malik to assist with the investigation. She refused to answer the phone, didn't answer her door and didn't return messages.
On Monday, police found out that contrary to her story, Malik wasn't at work the day of the reported attack. After further digging, police said they determined the report was a hoax and may have been a ploy to get Malik's daughter to move back in with her.
Riverside chief of police Tom Weitzel said Malik thought her daughter would believe she lived in an unsafe neighborhood if she reported an attack.
The report of the rape led to a community uproar, including a press conference held earlier this week to demand a heightened sense of security and better lighting in the neighborhood.
Malik was scheduled for a bond hearing Tuesday.
